Budget cuts scorch Washington state parks

While Oregon state parks' independent funding structure has allowed them to weather the economic storm, severe budget cuts are sweeping state parks in Washington.

A dramatic drop in general fund tax dollars, combined with user fee revenue far below expectations, has led Washington State Parks to make cuts including:

Eliminating about one-third of the department's full-time positions during the past four years.

Cutting management positions, including the entire regional level of managers.

Ending the No Child Left Inside grants program, which paid for outdoor education and recreation activities for youth.

In the 2007-09 budget period, state parks received $94.3 million from Washington's general fund. In the current biennium, that allotment fell to $17.2 million.

"The system is not sustainable at the level we're at," said Sandy Mealing, spokeswoman for Washington State Parks.

The Washington Legislature also asked the state parks to wean completely off state support by July 2013.

Mealing said a state parks budget with zero state support is not only unadvisable but also unachievable.

"There is always going to be a reason for some state funding, because we are a state agency," she said.

For 2013-15, the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission plans to request $18 million, including money for maintenance, marketing and other programs, in general fund tax support, said Don Hoch, department director.

"We're just trying to get by," Hoch said. "We understand the budget situation we're in right now."

Marty Brown, outgoing director of the Washington Office of Financial Management, said it is unlikely that state parks will be granted the full $18 million. He said Washington State Parks is one in a long list of agencies groping for money from a tight budget.

In Oregon

The Oregon park system does not rely at all on general fund tax money. Instead, user fees provide about 40 percent of Oregon Parks and Recreation's total budget. Oregon Lottery proceeds -- parks get 7.5 percent of lottery revenue -- and RV registration fees each account for about 30 percent of the budget, which is $191.8 million for 2011-13.

"There haven't been the kinds of dramatic (funding) declines that have forced drastic actions in other states," said Chris Havel, communication and research coordinator for Oregon's state parks.

The dedicated lottery revenue in particular helps Oregon parks avoid the cuts to maintenance and staffing seen in other state parks systems, Havel said.

Washington and Oregon both see more than 40 million visitors each year to 117 and 241 parks, respectively.

"It's very hard to keep a system that popular running and in repair," Havel said.

John Hoffnagle, executive director of the Oregon State Parks Foundation, said Oregon's parks are in better shape than any other parks system in the country.

The foundation supplements the work of Oregon state parks. For example, while the parks system pays for infrastructure at Cottonwood Canyon State Park, which will open in 2013 in north-central Oregon, the foundation is raising funds for an experience center there.

Hoffnagle said he is confident voters and donors will continue their support.

"The state parks system is almost a defining part of being an Oregonian," he said.

The Discover Pass

To help Washington state parks, the Washington Legislature set up the Discover Pass in 2011. Park users now must buy a $10 day pass or a $30 annual pass.

The state parks commission projected about $32 million in revenue from the Discover Pass during its first fiscal year. Actual revenue amounted to less than half of that, totaling $15.7 million.

At Battle Ground Lake State Park in Clark County, park manager Jim Presser remembers turning visitors away on numerous summer days prior to the Discover Pass. This summer, Presser has had one day with a full parking lot.

"It went from zero to $10 basically overnight, and a lot of folks weren't happy with that," Presser said.

Mealing, the parks spokeswoman, said it is normal for the public to object to new fees and that fee resistance usually lasts about three years.

"Parks have never been free. They never have been, never will be," Mealing said. "I think we owe it to the generations before us and the generations after us to be good stewards of these natural resources."

State parks officials expect an increase in Discover Pass revenue, with projections of nearly $43 million for 2013-15.

Meanwhile, Washington residents can donate to state parks through the Washington Department of Licensing when they renew driver's, business and professional licenses. Donations have exceeded expectations, totaling $8 million rather than the projected $5 million a year for the 2011-2013 biennium.

The cuts

Hoch, the Washington State Parks director, said the public and the Legislature prioritize education, health care and other social services over parks when funds are thin.

"I think we're probably not recognized as an essential service," he said.

Closing parks is not an option. There is no viable way to decide which parks would close, Mealing said, and closures would cheapen the Discover Pass. So since 2008, Washington parks have eliminated or reduced 200 full-time positions, including rangers and construction and maintenance workers. The parks system also cut its deputy director and its three regional managers, ended multiple educational and interpretive programs and reduced equipment expenditures.

"If we don't get as much as we need from the Legislature, and other revenues don't pick up, we're looking at more cuts," Mealing said.

Visitors to Washington parks this holiday weekend can see the impact of the staff cuts in decreased maintenance, said Mealing.

Parks need to keep rangers on duty during peak season, from May to September, she said. Of 189 ranger positions, 66 were cut from full-time to five- or eight-month stints focused on peak months.

"When the parks are not as busy with visitors, that's when our staff do maintenance," Mealing said. "Now that we've had to reduce 66 of those positions, those positions won't be available to help with maintenance during the offseason, which means things don't get taken care of."

Also, the state parks must offer reduced camping and day-use fees for disabled veterans, low-income seniors and foster children. These exemptions cost about $8 million from the parks' biennial budget. Hoch contends the state needs to fund any fee exemption programs that it mandates.

The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission will submit its formal funding request to the state Office of Financial Management this month.